OPEN THREAD: Be here now.

THE FUTURE IS COMING: SpaceX launches 3 giant BlueBird direct-to-cell satellites on Falcon 9 rocket.

ME. IT’S ME. There’s One Predator That Terrifies Bears And Mountain Lions Alike.

THE AAUP’S MESSAGE TO CONSERVATIVES IS CLEAR: They will oppose your candidates, insult their critics, and still insist they are neutral guardians of academic freedom. That is not principled independence, it is partisanship with institutional branding.

CALL AN EXTERMINATOR: Tick Found in Austin Apartment Linked to Rare Relapsing Fever.

A FRIEND WRITES:

There has never been a time where the asymmetries of risk so favor living for the moment. Either AI will bring a Golden Age, in which case all your planning, preparing for and worrying about the future will be pointless. Or it will bring doom, in which case all your planning, preparing for and worrying about the future will be pointless.

There’s very, very little chance of something in between. There’s very, very little chance that all your planning, preparing and worrying about the future will make a difference. Live for now for once, without guilt for doing so. Work less. Save less. Plan less. Enjoy family and friends and nature more. Focus on relationships. Focus on shadow work. Focus on love.

I kinda like this, but I’m not convinced the future — at least the next two or three decades — is as binary as all that. People almost always overestimate the short term impact of technological revolutions and underestimate the long-term impact. The crowd that thinks that jobs will disappear by 2030 or 2035 is, I think, in the former category.

ANSWERING THE IMPORTANT QUESTIONS: Can Fish Oil Really Help You Recover Faster?

GREAT MOVIE, BUT IT WAS ONLY A MOVIE:

Problem:

Years later someone who was a big fan of the book made from these experiments went to try to follow it up.

They found one of the graduate students still alive.

He debunked the entire thing. He had found it very pleasant and left when he was ready.

The entire thing,… https://t.co/QTslw6MYP6

— John Ringo SF Author (@Jringo1508) August 6, 2026

Make Asylums Great Again.

THE AAUP’S PARTISAN TURN: The organization made its first-ever national political endorsement for Abdul El-Sayed, then its president reportedly called critics “clowns” in a now-deleted post. An academic-freedom organization cannot act like a political campaign and still expect everyone to trust its neutrality.

GREAT MOMENTS IN FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY:

The New York Times wrote a story about hospitals being spread too thin due to "Republican healthcare cuts"

The problem?

The hospital they cite as struggling is a "nonprofit" hospital with a $1B in offshore investments and a CEO making $5M/year.
pic.twitter.com/9cPbaj0Heu

— Matt Whitlock (@MattWhitlock) August 6, 2026

REVIEW: 2027 Ferrari Amalfi Spider First Drive: The Starter Ferrari Keeps Getting Better.

STUNNING:Most detailed images ever taken of sun’s surface revealed: ‘Major step forward.’

ALIVE: Mitch McConnell released from rehabilitation center after June fall.

WHY HOLD THEM BACK? Mamdani Booed Off Stage As Cops Hold Back Furious Crowd. Let him experience a “no police” world.

AMERICA’S NEWSPAPER OF RECORD WENT THERE:

Government-Run Stores To Allow Anyone To Buy Groceries If They Have Special Mark On Hand Or Forehead pic.twitter.com/npQ0PwsScV

— The Babylon Bee (@TheBabylonBee) August 5, 2026

Their discounts are beastly!

NO SURPRISE, BUT KUDOS TO HARMEET DHILLON FOR BEING ON IT:  “Justice Department Finds Duke Law School Discriminate Based on Race in Admissions.”

RABBI MICHAEL BARCLAY: Judge Not by the Flask, but by What It Contains: The Courage of Boy George.

STAY SAFE: aosu D1 Max, 4K 8MP Solar Security Camera Wireless Outdoor. #CommissionEarned

WELL, IT IS UNCONSTITUTIONAL: US District Court in Texas Rules That With $200 Tax Gone, NFA Registration is Unconstitutional.

NATALIE WINTERS: Top American Generals Joined a CCP Spy Front’s Backchannel Pushing China’s Military Agenda in Washington. Some Ended Up on China’s Payroll.

The Chinese Communist Party did not need to penetrate the Pentagon to gain access to America’s military leadership.

It built a private network around it.

For more than a decade, some of the most powerful retired officers in the United States participated in closed-door meetings with senior Chinese military leaders. The discussions covered Taiwan, the South China Sea, missile defense, cybersecurity and the future of relations between the two militaries.

The American participants included:

Gen. Peter Pace, former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
Adm. William “Bill” Owens, former Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
Gen. John Abizaid, former commander of U.S. Central Command
Gen. Raymond Odierno, former Army Chief of Staff
Adm. Jonathan Greenert, former Chief of Naval Operations
Adm. Timothy Keating, former commander of U.S. Pacific Command
Gen. Ronald Fogleman, former Air Force Chief of Staff
Gen. Dennis Reimer, former Army Chief of Staff
Adm. Joseph Prueher, former commander of U.S. Pacific Command
Gen. John Keane, former Vice Chief of Staff of the Army
Gen. Walter Sharp, former commander of U.S. Forces Korea
Gen. Charles Jacoby, former commander of U.S. Northern Command
Gen. Charles Wilhelm, former commander of U.S. Southern Command

The program was called the Sanya Initiative.

Read the whole thing.

SPOILER: They will not do what Biden’s importations cost taxpayers.

Now do what Biden's importations cost taxpayers. https://t.co/SBRcY7ay1g

— Doug Powers (@ThePowersThatBe) August 6, 2026

MEANWHILE, OVER AT VODKAPUNDIT: I Just Saw the Future in a Phone Call.

Link was bad before, sorry — fixed now!

GET YOUR VITAMINS: ForestLeaf Vitamin B2 riboflavin 400mg. #CommissionEarned

UNEXPECTED HEADLINES: Bernie Sanders Just Found a Socialist He Won’t Endorse.

REMINDER: THE WORKING CLASS IN THIS COUNTRY HAVE NEVER GONE FOR LUXURY BELIEFS LIKE SOCIALISM.

Michigan was useful in that it revealed that there's **no part** of the working class coalition that wants anything to do with the DSA.

Black voters in the inner city? Nope.

Rural voters? Nope.

— Patrick Ruffini (@PatrickRuffini) August 6, 2026